Brad Bird Thinks ‘1906’ Would “Lend Itself” To Multiple Episodes As TV Miniseries About S.F. Earthquake — SkimNews
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- Brad Bird said his long-pursued '1906' project "would lend itself to multiple episodes" as a TV miniseries about the 1906 San Francisco earthquake during an SDCC 2026 Hall H panel moderated by Collider's Steven Weintraub.
- Bird has sought to adapt James Dalessandro's 2004 novel since 2007; the book covers the earthquake and fire that killed more than 3,000 people and destroyed over 80% of San Francisco.
- Bird envisions eight episodes, aiming to balance "the detail of successive episodes" with "the size of a giant movie."
- Bird pushed back on internet rumors that budgets spun out of control, blaming the delays on the sheer volume of historical material he kept unearthing — likening the process to shedding ballast from a hot air balloon.
- Patton Oswalt prompted the multi-episode question via video message and slipped in a quick "and also Ratatouille 2?"
- Bird confirmed he's writing 'Incredibles 3' alongside director Peter Sohn, with composer Michael Giacchino attempting to coax further details.
- Ray Gunn — Bird's spy noir animated film with voices by Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson, and Tom Waits — had its first seven minutes screened and arrives Dec. 18 on Netflix.
Why it matters: Bird has pursued '1906' since 2007 — nearly two decades — and his pivot from feature film to limited series reflects how the project's historical scope kept outgrowing a single movie; if the eight-episode vision moves forward, it would be Bird's first television project after a film-only career spanning The Incredibles, Ratatouille and Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol.
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